GIRLS OF THE SUN

A rousing story about Kurdish female fighters in Iraq, a surprising phenomenon that is not that well chronicled in the West. It is based on true events that occurred in 2014. Mathilde is a war correspondent who embeds herself with a female unit of peshmerga fighters in the Daesh battleground of Northwestern Kurdistan in Iraq. Most of the women there are survivors and former sex slaves, following the massacre of their families and loved ones. A woman named Bahar is their leader, and they are fierce fighters, propelled by their personal suffering to fight back against the oppressors who have attempted to destroy their villages and especially theirfamilies. But they are also women, and their shared camaraderie and personal backstories add an extra layer of humanity that might not be found if the film were about male fighters. This is a film that challenges our expectations.

“**** Impressive and righteously angry war film.” Martyn Contero, Cinevue“For me, it is heartfelt, forthright and muscular…it wears its heart on its sleeve: a powerful, forceful story.” Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Eva Husson has been a nomad most of her adult life, living between the US, France and Spain. She got a Masters in English Literature from the Sorbonne University and a degree in Spanish Literature. After a stop over in Puerto Rico to enjoy life, she completed an MFA in Directing at the American Film Institute in LA. Eva directed her feature debut in 2015, ‘Bang Gang’ (A Modern Love Story), which has been garnering international interest since it premiered in competition at the Toronto Film Festival and was acquired for theatrical release in the US (Goldwyn) and UK (Metrodome). Prior to this, her shorts made the round of international festivals and in 2013, she completed a 50m comedy in English, ‘Those for Whom It’s Always Complicated’, which was released on French TV channel Arte.

The Whistler Film Festival Society is a charitable cultural organization dedicated to furthering the art of film by providing programs that focus on the discovery, development and promotion of new talent culminating with a must attend festival for artists, the industry and audiences in Whistler.